Talia Marby is nervous about the upcoming cooking contest
coming to town, but the reward money plus the urging of her
friend, Crystal Galardi, motivate her to participate. Talia
is the owner and proprietor of Fry Me a Sliver, a local
Wrensdale eatery specializing in fried foods, and she hopes
her recipe for miniature deep-fried apple pies will be a hit
with the judges. Unfortunately, not everyone in the
competition seems happy and Talia notices some animosity
surrounding one contestant, Norma Ferguson. Shortly after
the competition, Norma is found dead, and all the signs are
pointing to one of the contestants. Talia has been warned to
stay out of the police investigation, but how can she resist
when the lives of those she loves are at stake?
A FRYING SHAME is the third book in the Deep
Fried Mystery series, but readers new to the series
can easily jump right in and enjoy the storyline. Linda
Reilly provides readers with sufficient character
development and back story, so it isn't necessary to read
the first two books although I suspect you'll want to after
finishing this fun and engaging book.
I love Talia and her loyalty to her friends! Talia knows her
friend is innocent and she's willing to do whatever
investigating is necessary to prove so- even when it means
defying local law enforcement. As in the prior book, OUT OF
THE DYING PAN, Martha appeals to me even more than Talia.
Martha is somewhat grumpy, but her love for those around her
makes me want to hear her back story.
And oh the scrumptious recipes described in A FRYING SHAME!
I'm not typically a fan of deep fried foods but who can
resist miniature deep-fried apple pies? Or deep- fried mac
and cheese squares? In fact, my only complaint about A
FRYING SHAME is that we weren't provided even more of the
yummy sounding recipes as I want to savor Harry's tangy
tamale casserole, Norma's flaky-top chicken casserole, and
Dylan McPhee's cinnamon swirl brownies! If you love a solid
cozy mystery coupled with some delectable recipes and
engaging characters, then look no further than A FRYING SHAME!
A cooking contest becomes a fry to the finish in the new Deep Fried Mystery from the author of Out of the Dying Pan. Fry another day. The town of Wrensdale is abuzz with excitement when Steeltop Foods sponsors a cooking contest to promote its new product, the Flavor Dial. With a $25,000 prize at stake, all the contestants are on edge, including Talia Marby, owner of Fry Me A Sliver. She hopes her mini deep-fried apple pies will win her the money to pay off the renovations on her restaurant. But when Norma Ferguson wins with her flaky-top chicken stew, the tensions dial up even more. After Norma is found dead at her cooking station, the police suspect a losing contestant got a little too hot under the collar. Now it’s crunch time as Talia works to catch the killer and clear her name before another cook gets burned. Includes delicious recipes!
Excerpt
Talia picked up Crystal’s empty glass and carried it into the kitchen. Martha shot her a look. “What’s up with those two?” “I haven’t a clue, Martha.” Talia absently dumped out the ice cubes and stuck the glass in the commercial dishwasher. Skimming her gaze over the kitchen, she still couldn’t believe how much larger it felt after the renovations she’d done this past spring. With Martha’s help they’d redesigned the floor plan. The kitchen gained an extra twenty-four square feet of work space, while the sleek new chairs and fresh paint in the dining area gave it a roomier, more open look. Martha measured out three tablespoons of chipotle paste and mixed it into the slaw. “Like I said before, that shop is cursed.” “Now, Martha, you know that’s nonsense. Just because . . .” Talia’s thoughts drifted off, and she gave an involuntary shiver. “Because the last proprietor was murdered? When she’d been there barely a month?” Talia gave Martha a stern look. “That doesn’t mean the shop is cursed. Crystal and Audrey have done a wonderful job with The Fork and Dish. Besides, there’s no such thing as a curse.” She went over to the work table, where she’d left her own Flavor Dial. Was Martha right? Was it simply another half-baked idea designed to entice the public to spend? She picked up the wheel with her left hand, and with the fingers of her right hand she skimmed the names. Cardamom, cinnamon, cloves . . . on and on through the alphabet until she reached vanilla bean. With the exception of lavender, they were all spices she kept on hand. With a sigh, Talia set down the wheel. Okay, she’d use it for the contest. But after that it would probably get shoved out of sight on a top shelf somewhere. Maybe Martha was right about the Flavor Dial. But she wasn’t right about the curse. Audrey was having problems, that’s all. Who didn’t have personal problems? But curses? That was just crazy talk. Wasn’t it?
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